Information in this article may not be canonical to the storyline of the games or any other Sonic continuity. |
Doctor Maddie Wachowski, also known as Pretzel Lady, is a character that appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog film series produced by Paramount Pictures and its spin-offs. She is a human and the most respected veterinarian in Green Hills. She is also the wife of the town sheriff, Tom Wachowski.
Eventually deciding to move from her sleepy town to San Francisco with Tom so he could live out his dreams, Maddie traveled ahead of Tom to look for a new home. When Tom arrived with Sonic the Hedgehog however, Maddie agreed to help the two get Sonic off Earth. Following Sonic's triumph over Dr. Robotnik however, Maddie and Tom decided together to stay in Green Hills, where they took Sonic in as a part of the Wachowski family.
While living with Sonic, she became a mother figure to the hedgehog. After leaving Sonic home alone, Maddie and Tom went to Hawaii for Rachel and Randall's wedding, but ended up helping Sonic defeat Robotnik again with the help of Miles "Tails" Prower and Knuckles the Echidna.
With the addition of Tails and Knuckles, Maddie found the latter hard to understand, due to his habit of attacking repair crews and trying to motivate Ozzy as a guard dog. Eventually, the final straw came Knuckles nearly pitted Ozzy against their mailman, causing her to ground Knuckles.
Appearance[]
Maddie is an adult human woman of African-American descent. She is average of height with a healthy build, long black hair and brown skin and eyes. She wears a wide range of clothing.
For the most part, Maddie wears her silver wedding ring with a diamond.
History[]
Film series[]
Past[]
In the past, Maddie married Tom Wachowski despite her sister Rachel claiming that Tom was no good and disapproving of their relationship. After Maddie's marriage, Rachel would constantly suggest to her that she should divorce Tom.
At some point, Maddie attended veterinary school, something which she was able to pull off thanks to Tom, who took up two additional jobs; one to pay Maddie's rent and the second to pay for her tuition. Eventually becoming a doctor, Maddie would go on to become Green Hills's most respected veterinarian while maintaining a healthy and happy relationship with Tom.
Sonic the Hedgehog[]
One day, when Tom returned home from work, Maddie presented him with a letter from the San Francisco Police Department regarding Tom's application for a job in their department. Hearing that Tom had been selected to join the SFPD, Maddie presented Tom with a celebration cake, although she mistakenly presented him with the cake she had prepared in case he had been rejected first. Maddie then showed Tom the apartments she had been scoping out and suggested that she and Ozzy flew ahead to San Francisco in order to check out places to live in. Afterward, they both assured each other that they were fine with making these changes.
After traveling to San Francisco with Ozzy as promised, Maddie would stay with her sister Rachel and niece Jojo. Eventually calling Tom to check up on him, Maddie's casual conversation with Tom got interrupted when Tom went to check on what he believed were raccoons in the garage with Maddie's tranquilizer gun in spite of Maddie's wishes. Not long after, Maddie learned from the news that Tom was wanted by the government for domestic terrorism. Maddie tried to call him, but was unable to reach him. When Tom finally arrived at Rachel's house, Rachel refused to let him in. Coming to Tom's aid for an explanation, Maddie began arguing with Rachel until Ozzy revealed that Tom was carrying an unconscious and alien anthropomorphic hedgehog named Sonic. After Rachel was tied up, Maddie tried to take a look at Sonic to assess his injuries. Eventually awakening Sonic with some smelling salts, who greeted her as "Pretzel Lady", Maddie left the room for a minute to talk to Tom in private and getting an explanation. After having heard that Tom was helping Sonic get off Earth by locating his lost Rings on top of the Transamerica Pyramid, Maddie ultimately accepted Tom's decision to aid Sonic and decided to help him and Sonic out.
Taking Rachel's car, Maddie, Sonic and Tom drove to the Transamerica Pyramid. Upon arriving there, Tom got the receptionist to give them the keys to the roof while he and Maddie smuggled Sonic up there in a bag. Finding Sonic's Rings there, Maddie saw Sonic and Tom say goodbye to each other. Just as Sonic prepared to leave however, they were interrupted by the appearance of Dr. Robotnik in the Eggpod and his army of aerial Badniks. Surrounded on all sides, Maddie and Tom found themselves totally defenseless against Robotnik's drones. To save them, Sonic threw Maddie off the roof with Tom. As they both fell however, Sonic managed to reach them and open a Ring portal that sent them back to Green Hills, where they landed in a haystack on Farmer Zimmer's farm. Maddie and Tom later arrived at the town's main street, where Sonic was at the mercy of Robotnik. After Tom failed to subdue Robotnik, Maddie joined the protesting residents in protecting Tom when he threatened to kill him. Maddie then stood by Tom as he declared a seemingly deceased Sonic his friend. Suddenly though, Sonic woke up with his full power unleashed. After Sonic and Tom had then managed to banish Robotnik to the Mushroom Planet, Maddie realized that they had forgotten about Rachel and that they could never go back after all that had happened. However, Tom had decided that he was fine with staying in Green Hills, which Maddie liked.
Some time after, as Maddie and Tom were renovating their house from Robotnik's attack, they were visited by Commander Walters, who informed them that Robotnik had never existed in the eyes of the government and gave them a $50 gift card to the Olive Garden restaurant as thanks for keeping quiet about the incident. After Walters had then left, Maddie and Tom showed Sonic his new room in their attic, having moved all of Sonic's belongings from his cave up there. Maddie and Tom would then welcome a happy Sonic home as a part of the Wachowski family.
Sonic the Hedgehog 2[]
Several months after Sonic moved in, Maddie would one day arrive in Sonic's attic and wake him up from his slumber in order to remind him that he was supposed to meet up with Tom that day. Not long after, Maddie and Tom were heading to Hawaii to attend Rachel's wedding with her fiancé, Randall. With Sonic providing them with a Ring portal to their destination, Maddie, Tom, Ozzy and Sonic shared a sendoff. Maddie and Tom then received another Ring from Sonic to use to return home with, and she and Tom parted ways with Sonic, having left him in charge of Ozzy and the house.
While at Hawaii, Maddie would chat with Rachel before coming over to Tom and Randall, where she saw Rachel seemingly making peace with Tom. Some time after, Maddie spent some time with Jojo before reuniting with Tom. There, she saw Tom play a little trick up Jojo with the wedding rings that she was watching over as ring bearer. Afterwards, Tom admitted to Maddie that he wished Sonic could have some real friends like Randall's. Maddie, however, told him to relax and enjoy his vacation, assuring him that Sonic would be fine. At Rachel and Randall's wedding ceremony, Maddie accompanied Rachel as one of her bridesmaids. There, she took notice of Tom, who kept disrupting the ceremony with his phone, much to Rachel's increasing anger, as Rachel had secretly warned Tom not to disrupt her wedding in any way or there would be severe consequences if he did.
Eventually, Tom straight up interrupted the ceremony and punched Randall in order to retrieve the Ring he had accidentally mixed up with Rachel and Randall's wedding rings, much to Maddie's shock. As Tom proceeded to open the Ring, Sonic came through the portal with Tails and a wave of snow that buried the ceremony. Maddie and Tom then checked up on Sonic, who revealed Dr. Robotnik had returned and was seeking the Master Emerald. However, immediately after, Randall's guests revealed themselves as U.S. federal agents of G.U.N., who proceeded to capture Sonic and Tails. With Tom getting apprehended by the agents as well when he tried coming to Sonic and Tails' aid, Maddie voiced her protests to Commander Walters, who had appeared at the site as well, insisting that Sonic was no threat, but was ignored. Regardless, Maddie tried to warn Walters about Robotnik and that only Sonic could stop him and denounced his insistence that Robotnik is dead, only for Walters to pass that task over to his agents. Taking matters into their own hands, Maddie and Rachel decided to rescue Sonic, Tails, and Tom from the G.U.N. agents inside their holding area in a nearby hotel. Arming themselves with the gadgets in Tails' backpack that Jojo brought them, Maddie and Rachel snuck onto the premises of the hotel, sending a G.U.N. agent flying with a gadget along the way. There, Maddie went after Sonic, Tails and Tom while Rachel went after Randall. Inside the hotel, Maddie almost got caught by G.U.N. agents, but was saved by Rachel with another gadget. Soon after, Maddie found and freed Tom, Sonic, and Tails. While tending to the unconscious Tails outside, Maddie and her friends saw a green pillar of energy erupt in the horizon, which was a sign that Robotnik had found the Master Emerald. Maddie and Tom wanted them to make a plan together, but Sonic, who refused to let anyone get hurt, left them to deal with Robotnik alone. As Tails then woke up, Maddie and Tom tried to tend to him, only for Tails to warn them of the threat Sonic was facing. As such, they agreed to free Walters from their captivity and arrange a transport for them.
Returning to Green Hills in a G.U.N. military helicopter, Maddie and Tom joined G.U.N. as they surrounded the Mean Bean Coffee Café, Robotnik's current place of operations, where Wade is also held hostage inside. There, they saw Robotnik emerge in a Master Emerald-empowered state. Soon after, Robotnik began using his powers to construct the Giant Eggman Robot, which forced Maddie, Tom and G.U.N. to retreat. When Sonic later began luring the Giant Eggman Robot out of town, Maddie and Tom helped evacuate the citizens until they borrowed a truck from one of them to go get Sonic. Outside of town, as the Giant Eggman Robot was about to trample on Sonic, Maddie and Tom swooped by in the truck and rescued both the hedgehog and the Master Emerald. However, the Giant Eggman Robot then managed to topple the truck.
As Maddie, Tom and Sonic emerged from the truck, Sonic hoped to use the Master Emerald to stop Robotnik, only for the gem to crumble in his hands and release the Chaos Emeralds that had been hiding within. As the trio then got surrounded by a ring of fire from the Giant Eggman Robot's flamethrower, Maddie and Tom chose to stay by Sonic and face their end together as a family as the Giant Eggman Robot prepared to crush them with its foot. However, Maddie and Tom were saved when Sonic inadvertently absorbed the Chaos Emeralds and transformed into Super Sonic. Maddie then saw Sonic tear the Giant Eggman Robot apart and defeat Robotnik. As Maddie and Tom tried approaching Super Sonic however, Knuckles warned them that Sonic had gone mad with power. However, Sonic disproved that by remaining in control, summoning celebratory chili dogs and relinquishing the Chaos Emeralds. Afterwards, Maddie would share a hug with Sonic, whom she saw form an order with Tails and Knuckles to guard the Master Emerald.
Some time later, Maddie had a baseball game with Sonic, Tails, Knuckles and Tom, encouraging the serious Knuckles to just relax and have fun. After Knuckles made them lose their only ball though, they decided to go for ice cream. As they left, Maddie expressed happiness at how Sonic had found his own squad.
Sonic the Hedgehog 3[]
Maddie and Tom are shown having fun and being the referees of a contest run with Sonic the Hedgehog, Tails, and Knuckles the Echidna.
Comics[]
Sonic the Hedgehog: The Adventures of Sonic & Donut Lord[]
Having come to San Francisco ahead of Tom for their plans to move there from Green Hills, Maddie was eventually picked up by Tom, who was helping an alien anthropomorphic hedgehog named Sonic. While Maddie was happy that Tom had arrived safely, she was less happy about the situation he was in. After hearing that Tom was helping Sonic get his lost Rings from the top of the Transamerica Pyramid so he could flee from Earth however, Maddie understood Tom's decision and joined them on their mission.[3]
Upon arriving at their destination, Maddie and Tom smuggled Sonic to the rooftop viewing deck in a bag, where they found Sonic's lost bag of Rings. Immediately after however, Dr. Robotnik appeared in his Eggpod with his aerial Badniks. As Robotnik opened fire upon them however, Sonic pushed Maddie and Tom off the roof, away from the gunfire and into a Ring portal that led back to Green Hills. There, Maddie showed concern about Sonic, but was then surprised to hear Tom admit that it felt good to be back in Green Hills. Sonic then appeared from a Ring portal with Robotnik hot on his heels in the Eggpod. As Robotnik voiced his intention to dissect Sonic and neutralize Maddie and Tom, the pair berated Robotnik for his lack of humanity in comparison to Sonic, whom they declared as their friend. Upon hearing this, Sonic managed to unleash his full power and defeat Robotnik. As gratulations were made, Maddie and Tom declared their plans to move to San Francisco off, as Tom felt right at home in Green Hills after having proven himself on his adventure with Sonic. Not long after, Maddie and Tom moved all of Sonic's belongings in the Hedgehog Cave into their attic and welcomed Sonic home as a part of the Wachowski family.[3]
Sonic the Hedgehog 2: The Official Movie Pre-Quill[]
One day in Green Hills, Maddie had to go to the clinic. Before leaving the house, she told Sonic to stay out of trouble until Tom and Wade got back from their trip.[4]
Shorts[]
Sonic Drone Home[]
Maddie would eventually entrust Team Sonic to return some books she had borrowed from Green Hills' library.
TV shows[]
Knuckles[]
The Warrior[]
While the house was being repaired, Knuckles ended up ensnaring the repair crew, whom Maddie had to let go before heading over to chastise him, which gets nowhere. She then meets up with Sonic and Tails to try and convince them to help her with Knuckles before Sonic promised he will talk to him before they notice the former on the roof with Ozzy.[5]
The following morning however, Knuckles had turned the living room into an arena, and attempted to have Ozzy and the mailman battle before Maddie eventually grounds Knuckles. While cleaning up, Tails discovers the throne that Knuckles had made included parts from Maddie's car. With Tom out of town, she tried to call Wade to get her to work, but only gets his voicemail that he was at bowling practice.[5]
Personality[]
Incredibly warm and loving, as well as really smart, Maddie is shown to be exceptionally supportive of both her friends and loved ones, as well as their dreams. As an example, she made Tom a cake to congratulate him in case he got the job he wanted in San Francisco and another cake in case he did not get it. Whenever she senses that something is up with those close to her, she is willing to drop everything to work towards making both those close to her and herself happy together. As such, she is willing to sacrifice as much as those around her are willing to sacrifice for her sake. She also works well under-pressure and shows both emotional and intellectual maturity, refusing to engage in her sister's rants about divorcing Tom. She can also take matters into her own hands and does not give up when things get tough.
As a veterinarian, Maddie cares deeply about animals and those alike, being super nice and sympathetic towards both wild animals and domestic animals, and works hard to make sure they are healthy. Notably, she would scold Tom not to shoot the wild raccoons that get into their trash with her tranquilizer dart gun and got annoyed with him when she found out he shot Sonic with it.
Powers and abilities[]
Maddie has a PhD in veterinary medicine, giving her extensive knowledge in animal physiology. Her skills in this field are evidently high, having been deem the most respected veterinarian in Green Hills. However, she has little knowledge about the physiology of alien anthropomorphic animals like Sonic.
Relationships[]
Tom Wachowski[]
Maddie is shown to love her husband Tom Wachowski very much. They have a very trusting relationship and like joking and being sarcastic with each other. There is likewise rarely any strife between them and they are shown to spend cozy movie nights together, enjoying each other's company. Being extremely grateful for what Tom has done for her so she could pursue a career as a veterinarian, Maddie is similarly very supportive of Tom and his dreams. Notably, she had prepared two cakes for Tom when he got his response from the San Francisco Police Department about his admittance to the force: one in case he was admitted to the force and another in case he was not. She was similarly willing to give up her life in Green Hills and scope out a new home in San Francisco on behalf of him. Even when Tom was in hot water with the government and was on the run with an alien, Maddie understood why he was doing it and was willing to help him, showcasing an extreme level of trust in Tom's judgment.
Despite their loving relationship though, Maddie and Tom have different viewpoints about how to deal with wild animals. While Maddie sympathizes with them, Tom is willing to take more drastic measure in order to keep them away when they invade his home. While he respects Maddie enough not to actively kill wild animals, Tom is quick to talk himself out if such arguments with Maddie so he can handle things his way.
Rachel[]
When it comes to her sister Rachel, Maddie has a complex relationship with her. While Rachel constantly disapproves of her relationship with Tom and insists that she should divorce him, Maddie is still willing to visit her and Jojo, showing that she is still willing to treat her like family. When Rachel becomes more assertive in her opinion or too emotional, however, Maddie is willing to take a stand by not engaging in a conversation with her and will be ready to pacify her by whatever means possible, albeit just enough not to cause her serious harm, like when she opted to tie her up to keep her from calling the authorities when Tom brought Sonic to her house. Despite this, they are able to harmonize with each other should the need arise, as seen when they worked together to get through G.U.N.'s agents on Hawaii.
Sonic the Hedgehog[]
When Maddie first saw Sonic the Hedgehog, who was unconscious at the time, Maddie's first response was a silent shock. Nonetheless, Maddie was sympathetic enough about Sonic to examine his injuries despite having no knowledge about his physiology. She also showed sympathy for Sonic when she saw that his feet had been hurt from wearing through his shoes. When Sonic later came to, Maddie was so shocked by Sonic's sapience and powers that she needed a moment alone with Tom to process it, showcasing disbelief at Sonic despite all Tom had told her. Despite this, Maddie's support of Tom would prompt her to help Sonic get his Rings back.
After spending some time with Sonic, Maddie began to like him in her own way, saying that he was "cute" when interacting with Tom. Eventually, she would develop enough affection for the hedgehog to be willing to take him in as a member of the Wachowski family, becoming somewhat of a parental figure to him. Since they have come to live together, Maddie has deemed Sonic quite hard-headed.[4]
As time went on, Maddie and Sonic's relationship would evolve from a friendship to a form of son-and-mother relationship, with Maddie trying to be a supporting presence to Sonic by steering him in the right direction, namely by disapproving of his reckless behavior. Nonetheless, Maddie has great faith in Sonic, assured by herself that for all of his immaturity and recklessness, he is a smart kid and will find his way through life. Ultimately, Maddie would declare her motherly love for Sonic when it seemed like they were going to get killed by the Giant Eggman Robot, with Sonic returning this love as only a foster child could do.
During Knuckles' struggle to settle down, Sonic was the only one Maddie tried to turn to for help.
Knuckles the Echidna[]
Maddie met Knuckles the Echidna when he prevented Sonic from being touched in his Super Sonic state, having expected him to have been driven mad by power, although they discovered that Sonic remained in control. She appreciates Knuckles as a friend of hers and Sonic's and finds him hilarious for his confused attitude. Likewise, Knuckles cares about Maddie. He was dedicated to returning her books to the library so she wouldn't be fined with late fees, only for said books to be incinerated by Unit, much to his fury.
However, Maddie was annoyed whenever Knuckles would ensnare a repair crew or give Ozzy warrior advice, to the point where she eventually grounded him when Knuckles turned their living room into an arena, nearly pitted Ozzy against their mailman, and used some of her car parts to make a throne.
Friends/allies[]
- Crazy Carl
- Farmer Zimmer
- Green Hills Sheriff's Department
- Tom Wachowski (husband)
- Wade Whipple
- G.U.N.
- Jojo (niece)
- Mailman
- Ozzy (pet)
- Rachel (sister)
- Team Sonic
- Knuckles the Echidna
- Miles "Tails" Prower
- Sonic the Hedgehog (adoptive son)
Neutral[]
Enemies[]
Quotes[]
- "You sacrificed for me, I'm happy to sacrifice for you."
- —Maddie to Tom, Sonic the Hedgehog (film).
- "Your surprise better not be my tranquilizer gun."
- —Maddie, about Tom informing her he plans to "surprise" the raccoons, Sonic the Hedgehog (film).
- "I'm a vet, Tom, I don't even know what I'm looking at here."
- —Maddie about Sonic, Sonic the Hedgehog (film).
- "Ah, first of all, can we take a moment to acknowledge how under control I've been? Didn't freak out, totally calm?"
- —Maddie about Sonic, Sonic the Hedgehog (film).
- "Okay, you said you wanted to help people in real trouble, right? Well, that's what you're doing. Blue alien hedgehogs still count as people, right?"
- —Maddie to Tom, Sonic the Hedgehog (film).
Trivia[]
- Maddie's first name was originally reported to be "Annie", but was changed in the finished film.[6][7]
References[]
- ↑ נאקלס (2024) (Hebrew). ishim.co.il. Retrieved on 19 August 2024.
- ↑ Knuckles / Knuckles (Slovak). Dabingforum.sk (August 3, 2024). Retrieved on August 5, 2024.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Sonic the Hedgehog: The Adventures of Sonic & Donut Lord, "The Adventures of Sonic & Donut Lord"
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Sonic the Hedgehog 2: The Official Movie Pre-Quill, "Hedgehog Day Afternoon"
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Fowler, Jeff (April 26, 2024). "The Warrior". Knuckles (TV series). Season 1. Episode 1. Paramount+.
- ↑ Nguyen, John (2 May 2019). Sonic the Hedgehog director to change main character’s design after criticism. Nerd Reactor. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020.
- ↑ Tika Sumpter on Twitter (4 April 2019). Archived from the original on 12 January 2021.